Lesson in a Lesson

Last year I completed my Advanced Yoga Teacher Training for Yoga Alliance Certification at the 500 hour level. It was a wonderful two-year exploration with a terrific group of women.

In the second year each of us was to present a project. The guidelines were broad- on purpose. We were to simply present a topic to the group that was fairly new to us and that would be something we would later use in teaching our yoga classes.

The topic I chose was not totally new to me, but I did learn as I prepared to present. An even bigger lesson came several months after my presentation.

I presented on the topic of judgement and observation in life as well as information on health and wellness. This sharp group of ladies was already quite used to my excitedness of presenting and participated kindly and openly. I gave each of the ladies a list of topics that we could discuss of health, wellness and life. The ladies could choose from the list and we discussed and I shared my experience and observations. There was only one topic that I wanted to address in particular, and that was the topic of judgement and observation.

The one thing that I made sure that we addressed. It was a video clip of a UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) that, for me, had many lessons in it.

I showed the short fight between Matt Hughs and Georges St. Pierre of the UFC 65 in 2006. St. Pierre defeated Hughs by TKO in 1:25 of the second round. It was as a short, but intriguing fight- at least to me.

I do consider myself a non-violent person- and likely will seem to be justifying my interest in seemingly barbaric UFC. Well, here I go anyway. Admittedly, I do get quite excited watching the fights as one would rooting for their favorite sports team. Although, in the UFC, I do not necessarily have a favorite team. I look at the skill and most of all, the character of the fighters. This, I think, makes a winner.

In UFC 65, two true winners were in the ring. They had fought each other many times before and were aware of each others great strengths, and few weaknesses. During this fight St. Pierre had accidentally kicked Hughs in the groin twice. There are few rules in the UFC, but it is clear that one mat not: kick to the groin, eye jab or elbow or knee a persons face into the the mat. Hughs was obviously hurt with each groin kick, but because Matt respected his opponent, he trusted that the low shots were not on purpose. With a fair warning from the referee each time, the fight continued.

St. Pierre is known for his swift movements- of which Hughs kept himself very aware. Sometimes though, a fighter does not know what to look for until it hits him. St. Pierre landed a spinning back kick (a seemingly impractical move- yet Georges can pull it off). It caught Hughs by surprise and he maintained his stance as he realized what had happened. Then he good- naturedly raised his hand to St. Pierre with a large grin on his face and they high-fived each other. Imagine that! Someone who just got hit, giving his opponent a high-five!

So, I fast-forwarded through highlights and talking and emphasized these observations that I just mentioned.

I was interested to see that there were three very different reactions. A few ladies were as excited as I was, and said that they too watch the UFC. A few were indifferent. The rest were noticeably disturbed. I knew that a few would be unsettled by this part of the presentation, but I was not sure who. I prepared them before hand by suggesting that they step out of their bodies and observe themselves from a corner in the room- remove themselves from the emotion. This is often easier said than done.

There was a deeper lesson in it all for me. Although I was talking about observation (of one self and the conduct of others in the example of showing the UFC fight) we see what we are pre-programmed to see. It takes effort to see beyond the reality or veils in our mind.

My reality was that it was exciting and I love to observe the camaraderie and sportsmanship in the most seemingly unlikely situations.

Several months after my presentation it became very apparent to me that I do not like the visual stimulus of aliens and deep sea creatures in movies or t.v. shows. I suspect why this might be. Perhaps I miss out on some really interesting shows because I choose not to watch such things- and may even miss out on some fascinating lessons.

I also see that some people may be able to recognize that there is a 'higher' level of sportsmanship and athletic ability in some of these UFC fights, but it still may not be comfortable to watch- just like I choose not to watch alien or deep sea type movies despite the art and entertainment possibilities.

So, my thanks, dear yogini friends for your participation and patience. My apologies for any anxious and uncomfortable feelings.

I find that there are lessons around every corner- I just have to keep my 'eyes' open.

Namaste